Question
Do newborns need to have their hearing checked?
Answer
Newborn hearing screenings are generally required. Newborn hearing screenings are an objective, simple, and rapid method to identify newborns with potential hearing impairments and to further diagnose and follow up. Common methods of newborn hearing screenings include otoacoustic emissions and automated auditory brainstem response, both of which are internationally recognized non-invasive methods. Normal ear canals produce very soft sounds that are transmitted through the ossicles and eardrum to the outer ear canal and can be detected. If a baby has hearing loss in the ear canal, otoacoustic emissions will not occur, and the otoacoustic emissions test will fail. The automated auditory brainstem response can reflect the function of the outer ear, middle ear, ear canal, and auditory nerve pathways.